Banished  and  Recalled. 


REMARKS 
JOSEPH  B.  CUMMING, 

INTRODUCING 

Hon.  Emory  Speer, 

ORATOR  OF  THE  DAY, 

July  4,  1897. 


AUGUSTA,  GA. 
Chrpnicle  Job  Printing  Co. 
1897. 


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Banished  and  Recalled. 


REMARKS 


JOSEPH  B.  CUMMING, 

INTRODUCING 

Hon.  Emory  Speer, 


ORATOR  OF  THE  DAY, 


July  4.  1897. 


AUGUSTA,  G-A. 
Clirpnicle  Job  Printing  Co. 
1897. 


BANISHED  AND  RECALLED. 


No  American  citizen,  doing  anything  he  may  be  called  on  to 
do  in  celebrating  this  day,  ought  to  need  any  other  inspiration 
than  the  day  itself  and  its  inseparable  and  undying  memories. 
Surely  the  small  but  very  gratifying  and  highly  honorable  part  I 
have  in  the  program  ought  to  find  all  its  materials  near  at  hand. 
Nevertheless,  in  somewhat  the  spirit  with  which  the  devout 
Christian  turns  naturally  to  his  Bible  in  all  the  interesting  occa- 
sions of  life,  to  find  there  a voice  for  his  feelings,  I am  apt  to 
have  recourse  to  another  immortal  volume  to  arouse  my  slow 
brain  or  to  speed  my  halting  speech.  So,  from  the  moment  I 
learned  I was  to  be  something  more  than  a mere  listener  on  this 
most  interesting  occasion,  a line  of  surpassing  beauty  from 
Shakespeare  has  been  making  music  in  my  thoughts. 

You  all  recall  the  “induction”  to  the  Taming  of  the  Shreu — 
how  the  prince,  returning  from  the  chase,  finds  a poor,  drunken 
vagabond  at  his  gate  in  besotted  sleep.  He  gives  his  attendants 
directions  to  bear  him  gently  into  the  palace  without  disturbing 
his  heavy  slumber;  to  convey  him  to  the  most  luxurious  apart- 
ment; to  lay  him  in  the  most  voluptuous  bed  and  to  draw  its  silk- 
en curtains  about  him.  He  charges  them  to  let  his  waking  senses 
be  greeted  by  the  softest  lights,  the  most  delicious  perfumes  and 
the  most  enchanting  music.  He  is  to  be  surrounded  in  the  hour 
■of  returning  consciousness  by  obsequious  courtiers,  whose  duty 
it  shall  be  to  persuade  him  that  this  fair  environment  is  only  his 
due;  that  he  is  indeed  a prince.  He  is  to  be  convinced  that  for 
many  years  he  has  been  a victim  of  insane  delusions,  imagining 
x imself  the  poor  drunken  tinker,  Christopher  Sly;  but  that  this 
is  the  hour  of  returning  reason;  that  Christopher  Sly  was  a 
dream  and  the  prince  is  the  reality. 

So,  as  he  awakes,  the  courtiers,  “with  low  submissive  rever- 
ence,” attest  their  joy  that  their  lord’s  reason  has  come  back  from 
its  wanderings  in  the  realm  of  degrading  delusions.  "Wilt  thou 
have  music?”  asks  one. 


3 


“Hark!  Apollo  plays, 

And  twenty  caged  nightingales  do  sing.” 

“Say  thou  wilt  walk,  we  will  bestrew  the  ground; 

Or  wilt  thou  ride,  thy  horses  shall  be  trapped, 

Their  harness  studded  all  with  gold  and  pearl. 

Dost  thou  love  hawking?  thou  hast  hawks  will  soar 
Above  the  morning  lark;  or  wilt  thou  hunt? 

Thy  hounds  shall  make  the  welkin  answer  them 
And  fetch  shrill  echoes  from  the  hollow  earth.” 

And  the  princely  contriver  of  the  plot,  finding  the  poor  awak- 
ening tinker  amazed  and  dazed  by  this  wonderful  transformation 
and  halting  between  bewilderment  and  belief,  himself  adjures 
him  in  the  sweet  line  I spoke  of  as  singing  in  my  brain: 

“Call  home  thy  ancient  thoughts  from  banishment.” 

The  prince  appeals  to  him: 

“Bethink  thee  of  thy  birth, 

Call  home  thy  ancient  thoughts  from  banishment.” 

That  is  what  we  are  doing  this  day.  We  bethink  us  of  our 
birth_right  and  call  home  our  ancient  thoughts  from  banishment. 
For  there  was  a time,  so  long  ago  that  a generation  has  been 
born  meanwhile  and  attained  middle  age  with  no  knowledge  of 
it — a time,  however,  which  lives  in  the  memory  of  us  elders — 
when  this  was  wont  to  be  a day  of  days,  a day  of  oratory  and 
eloquence,  a festal  day,  a day  of  civic  pageant  and  military  pomp 
and  circumstance. 

Since  then  more  than  a third  of  a century  has  intervened,  dur- 
ing which  the  Declaration  of  Independence  and  all  other  voices, 
once  so  audible  on  this  day,  have  been  unheard  in  this  Southern 
land.  In  the  first  years  of  this  long  silence,  the  tremendous  exi- 
gencies of  the  passing  hour  engrossed  our  every  thought  and 
taxed  our  every  faculty.  Next  came  a period  of  stupid  and  humil- 
iating misgovernment,  well  fitted  to  estrange  us  from  the  once 
cherished  traditions  of  the  common  country.  Then  followed  the 


4 


struggle — which  still  persists,  forsooth — against  the  hard  con- 
ditions of  these  latter  days — a struggle  which  has  left  little  time 
or  opportunity  or  heart  for  aught  but  the  material  side  of  life. 

Whether  I attribute  it  to  its  proper  causes  or  not,  the  fact  itself 
exists  that  for  more  than  a generation  the  Fourth  of  July,  its 
memories  and  observances  were  exiled  from  this  Southern  land. 
We  now  “call  home  our  ancient  thoughts  from  banishment."  and 
we  intend  to  enjoy  the  delights  of  the  palace  which  our  own 
fathers  builded. 

In  the  furtherance  of  this  high  purpose,  our  first  choice  in  the 
matter  of  the  chief  function  of  the  day  fell  upon  the  eminent  citi” 
zen — jurist,  scholar  and  orator — whom  I shall  have  the  honor  co 
introduce  to  you.  He  graciously  consented  to  make  his  large 
contribution  to  this  revival  and  thus  give  auspicious  beginning 
to  this  new  dep  arture. 

I would  be  d oing  a superfluous  thing  to  spend  words 
in  making  him  known  to  you  and  be  wronging  you  by  further 
deferring'  the  pleasure  you  will  have  in  hearing  him.  Therefore, 
without  adding  to  the  delay  I have  already  made  and  for  which 
I crave  pardon,  I present  to  you  the  Honorable  Emory  Speer, 
orator  of  the  day. 


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